LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 

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UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



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THE CHURCHMAN'S 



BY REV. ROBERT S, BARRETT, 



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"Every scribe which is instructed in the Kingdom of Heaven, 
is like to a man that is a householder, which bringeth forth 
out of his treasure things new and old." 



Ef _ H 

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Richmond, Va.: 
BAUGHMAN BROTHERS. 
1879. 



5H5HSH5H5HSHSH5H5H5HSH5H5HSH5HSS5H5H5H5H5HS5SH5H5H5HSHSHSHSH5H5HSH5H5ii)|J 

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Copyright i8jg, by Rev. R. S. Barrett, Richmond, Va. 



PRICE — Single copy, 10 cents; one dozen copies, $i oo; one hun- 
dred copies, $5 oo. 



Tm Library 

QT 08*6*886 



PREFACE. 



Most persons begin a scrap-book. Few keep one. My pur- 
pose in this little book is to give to the public some of my 
scraps. 

Some of the best and most useful tracts I have ever seen, 
have been short articles in the Church papers. Some of these 
I have thrown into shape for persons who, like myself, love 
brevity. 

The reader will here find lessons on the Church served in 
various styles, and I hope there is something to suit every 
taste. 

R. S. B. 



SPEAK FOR YOUR CHURCH. 



From all sides, from all denominations of Christians, peo- 
ple are turning their thoughts to the Church's claims, and 
worship, and history. Almost every month the writer of this 
meets some new worshipper who is just learning the Church's 
ways. Every year some other body of Christian people takes 
a step in search of the " old paths." People who used to de- 
nounce the Prayer-Book most bitterly are quietly appropria- 
ting many of its beauties. Holy days are winning their way 
to the approval of all. Christmas and Easter need no apol 
ogies now. Good Friday is remembered more and more 
widely. The Te Deum, Gloria in Excel sis and Gloria Pa- 
tri are sung often in congregations where they were once shut 
out as Romish. The patience, the firmness, the strong con- 
servative fidelity which have held fast the old Apostolic truths 
and worship, however for the time unpopular, are finding their 
reward. 

But the Church and Churchmen must remember that they 
need to do something more than "hold fast. 11 They must 
" speak out.' ' 

"Why don't you let people know what your Church is?" 
is the question often asked in wonder by those just learning 
to love it. "This worship," said one lately, "is what I have 
been longing for for years. It had been described to me as a 
mere formality. I find it full of life and earnestness." Said 
another: " I had long joined in the popular cry that your 
Church was so exclusive. Now I know for myself that no 
other body of Christians has such liberal terms of commun- 
ion. Why don't you take pains to show that fact to all? " 
And yet another recently asked of the writer, " Why are you 
Churchmen so close-mouthed ? You go about your own bus- 



4 



iness and don't seem to care much for what others think. If 
you would only speak out for your Church as others do for 
theirs, you would do better." 

And so, good friends, who read this article, I beg you to 
speak out for your Church. Some may say you are "prose- 
lyting" — another ugly word. Ugly words are the favorite 
weapons of ignorance and prejudice. Set against them our 
Saviour's command to "make disciples," to "compel them 
to come in." If you believe that in the Church you enjoy 
very great privileges and blessings, it is a duty of Christian 
charity to convince others of that fact, and to invite them to 
share with you. 

Speak out, then, for your Church. Do not keep all your 
enthusiasm for conversation wifh church people. Let others 
hear of your love of the Church's ways. They will want to 
see for themselves what you praise. They will learn from 
your words some of its peculiarities. They will think more 
favorably of a Church that can so kindle its member's love. 

What we wish is that those who are strangers to the Church, 
or prejudiced against it, should know it as it really is. Once 
awaken some interest by your words, and a book or tract, or 
a visit with you to the church, will give light. A fair under- 
standing of our claims, our history, our principles, our wor- 
ship is what we desire. And to promote this, speak for your 
Church, lovingly and fearlessly, and circulate its books and 
tracts. — Earnest Worker. 



THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND. 

If any King or Bishop of England had been asked in the 
ages before the Tudors, as to what Church he belonged, he 
would have answered, " The Church of England." In fact, 
England never had a Roman Catholic sovereign until James 



5 



II. became such, and lost his crown in consequence. Never 
was England worse trampled upon by the See of Rome than 
in the days of King John ; yet that was the epoch of Magna 
Charta; and its first words proclaimed the freedom of "the 
Church of England/* not of "the Church of Rome in Eng- 
land" — much less of "the Roman Catholic Church in Eng- 
land* ' — a Church of which nobody ever heard until after 
Queen Elizabeth's accession and the Romish Recusancy. 
And what is true of England, is true of France and other 
Western Churches ; their sovereigns and prelates belonged to 
the Gallican Church, the German Church, etc. In those 
days, then, " the Church of Rome" meant the See of Rome 
and its Italian Provinces, and there was no " Roman Catholic 
Church" in existence. This stupid and self-refuting name 
was born of the new ideas which took possession of the Latin 
Churches after Luther's day ; and it is a badge of modernism 
which may well suggest the question, " Where was your reli- 
gion before Luther ?" — Bishop Coxe. 



HISTORY IN A NUT-SHELL. 

"(i.) From the ist to the 7th century, she may be called 
'The British Church/ and was without the shadow of Romish 
influence. 

"(2.) From the 7th to the nth century, she may be called 
the ' Anglo-Saxon Church.' This was not a new church, but 
the British Church with a comparatively mild infusion of Ro- 
manism. 

"(3.) From the nth to the 16th century, she may be called 
'The Anglo-Romish Church/ This was the same Holy Cath- 
olic British Church, with a strong infusion of Romanism. 

"(4.) From the x6th to the 19th century, she may be call- 
ed 'The English Church/ which, like each of the other 



6 



names, does not indicate a new Church, but only a new state, 
viz : the state in which ancient British privileges had been re- 
sumed, by a thorough expulsion of Romanism in any form. 

"(5.) In the United States, the same Holy Catholic Church 
goes by the name of the Protestant Episcopal Church.' ' 



ORGANIC AND UNBROKEN UNITY. 

BY A CONGREGATIONALIST. 

The Episcopal Church furnishes (to all who need such com- 
fort) the assurance of an organic and unbroken unity and suc- 
cession from Jesus Christ, through the Apostles, by a line of 
authentic bishops down to Bishop Huntington of this diocese. 

King Henry VIII, and Queen Elizabeth, with their procla- 
mations and parliaments, are so conspicuous and fill so much 
space in the merely political history of the English Church, 
that many able writers deny that the river of Apostolic succes- 
sion, so dammed by them, could ever get around the dam and 
flow along again pure and uncontaminated. I cannot decide 
this question absolutely. 

What I say is this : The apostolic succession in the Episco- 
pal Church can be traced back so many hundred years into 
the dim past, that it is no shame for any man to say, "I be- 
lieve it to extend back to Peter, Paul and John and he 
who verily believes that the ordaining or confirming hand of 
the bishop of this diocese is electric with the spiritual life that 
proceeds from Jesus of Gallilee, will find it a hand of virtue 
and worth. He who doubts, will find it a hand of form and 
ceremony. 

And so, without stopping to decide the question whether our 
bishop is really a successor of Paul or John, I say that the 
Episcopal Church affords so much evidence that she has in 
her Episcopate the true succession, that it is no shame to any 



7 



common man to believe her. And if a man believes in his 
bishop, he will get from him all the benefit that can come 
from bishops. 

Brethren, many needy souls are not able to lay hold upon 
God one by one. They cannot appropriate a gospel promise 
to themselves. Like Job of old they say : If I had called 
and He had answered me, yet I would not believe that He had 
hearkened unto my voice ! — viii. , 16. 

Such extreme and exemplary humility asks for and needs a 
church ark, and the humble place and privilege of a private 
passenger. The ark of God that shall outride the deluge. 
The Church of Christ in which is found salvation. 

I say then that the claims of the Episcopal Church to be 
such an ark of God, or Church of Christ, endowed with sa- 
craments, absolutions and profitable authority are for all prac- 
tical purposes valid. 

I leave historians and ecclesiasts to their endless words, and 
assert that the poor in spirit, who seek comfort and salvation 
through the offices of the Episcopal Church, are as well off in 
her as they can be in any church. And since many are pro- 
foundly prejudiced against the Church of Rome, I am happy 
to point all such to a sure welcome in the Episcopal Church, 
with sacraments, successions and authority as good as the 
best. 



DIGNITY AND PERMANENCE. 

The Episcopal Church preserves a very high grade of dig- 
nity, decency, propriety and permanence in all her public 
offices. 

In nearly every newspaper you may read some funny story 
based upon the ignorance and eccentricity, or blasphemous 
familiarity of some extemporizing prayer-maker. All of you 



8 



here present have been at some time shocked or bored by 
public devotional performances. Nothing of this sort ever 
: occurs in the Episcopal Church. All things are done and 
' spoken decently, and in order. 

And so, too, of permanence and its accumulating worth of 
holy association- — no transient observer can adequately value 
': this treasure of a birth-right Churchman. 

To be using to-day the self-same words that have through 
the centuries declared the faith or made known the prayer of 
that mighty multitude, who being now delivered from the 
burden of flesh, are in joy and felicity: 

To be baptized in early infancy, and never to know a time 
when we were not recognized and welcome among the mil- 
lions who have entered the same door : 

To be confirmed in due time, in a faith that has sustained 
a noble army of confessors, approving its worth through per- 
secutions and prosperities, a strength to the tried and a 
chastening to the worldly-minded : 

To be married, by an authority before which kings and 
peasants bow alike, asking benediction upon the covenant that 
without respect of persons binds by the same words of duty, 
the highest and the lowest : 

To bring our new-born children as we were brought, to be- 
gin where we began, and to grow up to fill our places : 

To die in the faith, and almost hear the Gospel words soon 
to be spoken over one's own grave as over the thousand times 
ten thousand of them who have slept in Jesus : 

In short, to be a devout and consistent Churchman, brings 
a man through aisles fragrant with holy association, and ac- 
companied by a long procession of the good, chanting as they 
inarch a unison of piety and hope until they come to the holy 
place where shining saints sing the new song of the redeemed. 
And they sing with them. 



9 



OUR CHURCH NAME. 

In the prayer-book, as also in the Constitution and Canons 
thereof, our Church is designated as the Protestant Episco- 
pal. It has no other legal title. There is no authority, ec- 
clesiastical or civil, for calling it by any other. Among our- 
selves, and in speaking to those of our own household, we 
may, for the sake of brevity and convenience, call it "The 
Church." But, among outsiders, and when we would speak 
with legal exactness, the true name is the Protestant Epis- 
copal Church. 

The name which thus belongs to our Church was adopted 
because it describes our doctrinal and governmental attitude. 

First. We are Protestant. The word has reference to 
the Church of Rome. Against the doctrinal errors of that 
body we protest, and are Protestants. For thus protest- 
ing, the fathers of our own dear Church w r ere burned alive at 
Smithfield by the Roman Catholic Queen,. " Bloody Mary." 
Against the errors of that Church we protest with emphasis, 
and in detail in the XXXIX Articles of Religion, which are 
the recognized doctrinal standard with us. Indeed, no Chris- 
tian body can point to a history, nor yet to a standard of 
doctrine, which so fully vindicates its claim to the title of 
Protestant. 

But, Secondly. We are Protestant Episcopal. Protest- 
ant refers to doctrine. Episcopal refers to form of church 
government. The word Episcopal is derived from a Greek 
word, episkopoe, which means overseer, bishop, &c. We call 
ourselves Episcopal, therefore, because in our government and 
organization the supreme direction and control has been 
placed in the hands of an officer whom we designate as our 
Episcopoe, that is, as our bishop or overseer. For 1,500 
years, from the time of Christ down to the Reformation, the 
episcopal form of church government was universally recog- 
nized and did universally prevail. 



IO 

Such then is the meaning of our name. Protestant in doc- 
trine, Episcopal in government. We cling to the one as vital, 
to the other as best The Lord Himself preserve us in the 
enjoyment of both. 



OUR CHURCH PROTESTANT. 

Enemies of the Episcopal Church, ignorant of her charac- 
ter, are fond of accusing her of being very nearly related to. 
the Church of Rome. 

Some weeks ago a non-Episcopal pastor said to a parishioner 
of the writer — " There is no essential difference between the 
Episcopal Church and the Roman Catholic/ ' and when the 
remark was reported to us we were almost tempted to send 
said non-Episcopal pastor a copy of the ninth commandment. 
Such " false witness against your neighbor" is inexcusable. 
And yet, because there are so many tongues busy circulating 
the slander, it may be well to recall some few facts which may 
enlighten minds willing to be enlightened. 

1. Note our name. Protestant Episcopal Church. 

2. Note our history. The Church of Rome burnt in the 
fires of Smithfield, through the agency of Bloody Mary, the 
the men who restored the Episcopal Church, and for that very 
reason. 

3. Note our literature. The arguments with which Pro- 
testanism has defended itself and assailed Rome have been 
drawn almost exclusively from the Protestant writings of the 
Protestant divines of this dear old Protestant Church. See, 
for example, the works of Barrow, Chillingworth, Jewell, 
etc., etc. 

4. Note our doctrines. The doctrines of the Episcopal 
Church are to be found in the Thirty-Nine Articles of Relig- 
ion. Turn to them as they stand, like Gospel beacon lights, 



II 



in the Prayer-Book. You will find them printed immediately 
after the Psalter. The first five articles touch doctrines in 
regard to which all Christendom is agreed. Articles from six 
to eight, inclusive, deal with the rule of faith, and there Rome 
receives its first blow. " Holy Scripture containeth all things 
necessary to salvation,' ' etc., etc. Articles from nine to 
eighteen, inclusive, deal with points of abstract doctrine per- 
taining to individuals, and there Rome receives a second 
blow. See what is said in regard to justification "by faith 
only, 1 1 good works, and the like. Articles nineteen and 
twenty deal with the nature and authority of the Church, and 
there the rock upon which the whole Roman polity is built is 
crushed. Article twenty-two condemns "purgatory, pardons, 
worshipping and adoration as well of images as of relics, and 
also invocation of saints. n Article twenty-four condemns all 
services conducted in a foreign tongue. Articles from twenty- 
five to thirty-one, inclusive, deal with sacraments, and there 
the very fundamentals of Rome receive a decisive center shot. 
See especially Article thirty-one, " of the one oblation of Christ 
perished upon the Cross. 11 Article thirty- two condemns an 
enforced celibacy. But not to specify, let the candid enquirer, 
honestly seeking to be enlightened, study these articles for 
himself. Their careful study will convince any unpreju- 
diced mind that this Episcopal Church deserves the name of 
Protestant. She was Protestant, she is Protestant, she will 
continue Protestant, or else her name must be changed, her 
history must be obliterated, her literature must be burnt, and 
her articles must cease to be regarded as her standard of doc- 
trine. 



PROTESTANT. 



At any rate never let us be ashamed of that word which is 
so often urged against us as a very watchword of disunion ; 



12 



never let us shrink from speaking of our Church as Protestant. 
Catholic it is in its faith and principles — Protestant in its at- 
titude to false teaching and doctrinal error. Are we to be 
told that it is merely a negative word? Is this to be a re- 
proach to us? Is not one of the holiest titles of the universal 
Church a negative title ? Is not the whole Church of Christ 
a militant Church? Militant against sin, the world and the 
devil, even as our own branch of that Church is Protestant — 
Protestant against perversion and corruption. God forbid 
that we should ever be tempted to disown the attitude which 
jealousy for the honor of our dear Lord compelled us to as- 
sume. God forbid that our Church should ever merge her 
honorable and distinctive title in the dangerous and disloyal 
acquiescences of doctrinal compromise. — Bishop Ellicott. 



OUR CHURCH MINISTRY. 

In the Protestant Episcopal Church the ministers are divid- 
ed into three grades or ranks : The third being subordinate to 
the second, the second being subordinate to the first, the first 
being supreme. 

The first rank is Bishop. He, in his own bishopric, is head. 
His powers are such as have been given him by law. He pre- 
sides in council. He alone can ordain ministers, consecrate 
churches, confirm candidates, &c. He is charged with a gen- 
eral oversight of the Church, being its mouth -piece, its ad- 
ministrator, its overseer. In a word, he is king, but with 
duties prescribed and powers limited by canonical enactment. 
The territorial jurisdiction — embraced within specified limits 
— is called Diocese. 

The second rank is Presbyter, by contraction, generally 
called Priest. He, as a gospel minister, is charged with the 
care of a particular congregation. His duties are to minister 



13 



to the spiritual needs of that congregation and discharge 
those multiplied functions so clearly announced by St, Paul in 
his Epistles to Titus and Timothy. He is known in church 
parlance as the Rector, and his territorial jurisdiction is des- 
ignated as the Parish. 

The third rank is Deacon. In ancient times men took 
upon them this office for life, and in connection with their 
secular business, assisted the Bishops and Presbyters in bap- 
tizing, preaching and caring for the poor. In these last days, 
however, all this has been changed. Men are now ordained 
Deacons, at once elevated into acting Rectors, placed in 
charge of Parishes, and then, at the expiration of twelve 
months, as a matter of course, ordained as Presbyters. We 
shall rejoice to see a return to the true, primative and Apos- 
tolic method. 



THE CHURCH YEAR. 

THE GOSPEL, IN ITS ESSENCE, IS A REVELATION OF PERSONS AND 
A STATEMENT OF FACTS — THE PERSONS REVEALED AND THE 
FACTS STATED ARE EMBODIED IN THE APOSTLE'S CREED. 

When Christ said: " Go ye into all the world and preach 
the Gospel to every creature,' ' He meant that the Church 
should communicate to and urge upon the acceptance of each 
living soul the Persons as revealed and the Facts as stated in 
His Gospel. 

The Episcopal Church seeks in divers ways to obey this 
command of her dear Lord and Master. Her chief agent is 
the Preacher, and her chief instrument the Preached Word. 
Yet, in addition thereto, and not to mention various human 
auxiliaries which she wisely invokes, we confine ourselves just 
now to The Church Year as one special method by which 
the Episcopal Church is enabled to emphasize the Persons and 
Facts of Christ's Gospel. 



In the Episcopal Church each one of the fifty-two Sundays 

in the year is individualized. That is to say : Each Sunday- 
is devoted to the presentation of some one distinct and par- 
ticular truth. The lessons which are read — the collect, the 
epistle, and gospel — all bear upon that truth, and are made 
subservient to its enforcement. Then, again, the Sundays 
are arranged in such a manner that the teachings of one Sun- 
day are made to fall in with and to supplement the teachings 
of the previous Sunday. Hence, a person who attends with- 
out intermission upon the services of the Episcopal Church, 
during any given twelve months, will, during that period, 
have presented to his mind in the services themselves (even 
though there be never a sermon preached), a certain, regular 
and systematic revelation of the Persons and statement of 
the Facts essential to the believer's salvation. 

On the Sunday nearest to the 30th of November, our 
Church Year begins. That Sunday is called Advent Sunday. 
Advent Sunday, with the three Sundays which follow, consti- 
tute our Advent Season. Just here the divine panorama be- 
gins to unfold. During the Advent Season our services re- 
mind us of the two comings of Christ — His coming eighteen 
centuries ago to save ; His coming in the dread hereafter to 
judge. The Advent Season over, Christmas commemorates 
the birth and incarnation of Him, "who, as on that day, was 
born of a pure virgin/ ' Christmas over, the feast of cir- 
cumcision will remind us that the Holy Child Jesus submitted 
to be "made under the law" that those under the law might 
"receive the adoption of sons." Circumcision over, we shall 
come next in order to epiphany, and there, as we bow with 
the Magi before the Infant King, we shall learn how world-em- 
bracing is the Gospel of Christ. Epiphany over, our services 
will lead us on successive Sundays to meditate upon Christ as 
a youth, as prophet, priest and king. Then Lent will draw 
near, Later, and during the week of "agony and bloody 



15 

sweat," our services will bind us to His side. We shall go 
with Him to the Hall of Judgment ; weep with Him in Geth- 
semine. Easter-Eve we shall rest by the grave in the garden. 
On Easter morning we shall hasten to the sepulchre and greet 
Him, whose "glorious resurrection " we shall that day cele- 
brate. At Ascensiontide, as the risen Saviour is received up 
out of our sight, we shall seek to raise our hopes and affections 
to that Heaven whither He hath gone before. So, too, on 
Whit-Sunday, we shall greet with grateful songs the Holy 
Ghost, the Comforter. And, lastly, on the festival of the 
Ever-blessed Trinity, we shall study our Triune- God as Crea- 
tor, Saviour, and Sanctifier. 

Thus will the Episcopal Church, during her Church Year — 
simply by her services — present to us the persons and facts 
which are the objects of saving faith. Naught will be over- 
looked. Upon these persons and facts the heart of faith must 
centre. " He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, 
He that believeth not shall be damned." — Rev. A. W. Wed- 
ddL 



THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH AS AN EDUCATOR. 

The Episcopal Church is excellent in her provisions for 
Christian education and pious drill. 

Churches that avowedly receive very young infants as mem- 
bers must necessarily provide education for these accepted 
children. Accordingly the Episcopal Church is characteristi- 
cally a church for the training of children. 

In the Prayer-Book and Church Almanac you find the 
Christian year divided into periods separated by high days- — 
monuments and memorials of Christian story. This Christian 
calendar agrees very nearly with that of the Roman Church. 
And he is an unusually well-informed Christian who can read 
over this catalogue of days, and in few words tell the story 



i6 

that each day celebrates. But a birth-right Churchman, who 
has been quietly trained in a church home for fifteen years, 
will need very little teaching more. 

In connection with this calendar is a system of lessons, in 
following which the reader is led through the entire Bible each 
year, and through its more profitable parts, monthly or oftener. 

He, who for years has been a Churchman, and yet remains 
ill-grounded in Scripture, shows an unworthy son of a very 
faithful mother. 

By the Lessons, Gospels, Epistles, Psalms, and Collects, ap- 
pointed for special fast or feast days, the events commemo - 
rated by that day are wrought into the memory of every wor- 
shipper. And by seasons, longer or shorter, of special religi- 
ous effort and observance, this Church satisfies the same want 
which other churches satisfy by weeks of prayer, protracted 
meetings and long revivals. 

A good school is a dull place to any visitor who rushes in to 
find sensation and excitement. 

He will call it dry, poky, stupid. In like manner, many 
religious sensation makers and sensation seekers will promptly 
vote the Church calendar and all its smooth machinery of 
pious drill, a very dull substitute for a regular, rousing revival. 
But, in the long run, the church that steadily trains and 
teaches will outlive the church that only arouses aud startles. 
" If ye continue in My word, then are ye My disciples indeed.'* 



WORSHIP. 

Am I mistaken in saying that, in our worship of God, we 
tend to run rather into the language of prayer than of praise ? 
That is because we are habitually more given to prayer than 
to praise, and this again, because we are more alive to our 
still ungratified desires than to the mercies which we already 



17 



have. Let any one recall his ordinary private devotions, and 
he will find, I think, that they have in them more of supplica- 
tion than of thanksgiving. Let him go still farther, and bring 
under review his habitual thoughts, and see if he is not more 
anxiously alive to the hourly wants that press upon him than 
to the innumerable mercies that crown his life. Is not this 
verily, of man's nature — that his thoughts tend selfward, not 
God ward ? 

Now, one of the great uses and necessities of " Forms of 
Worship" is to teach man how to worship — to teach him, 
alike, how to praise and how to pray ; to take him out of his 
narrowness and selfishness, and to raise his heart heavenward ; 
as well in adoring praise as in humble supplication. The 
Form of Prayer given by our Blessed Lord — and this divine 
model of acceptable worship ought to be the standard by 
which all forms should be tested — gives us the perfect idea of 
prayer. It begins by turning the soul from itself to God — 
" Our Father" — The Father always first in Holy Worship — 
always first in the hearts of His children ; then the coming of 
the Father's Kingdom, the hallowing of His Name, and the 
doing of His will, as in heaven, so on earth. Then, and not 
till then, come in thoughts of the worshipper's needs — daily 
bread, forgiveness of sins and deliverance from evil ; closing 
with ascriptions of praise and adoration. — Bp. of Alabama. 



PRAYER-BOOK IN WORSHIP. 

The advantages of the Prayer-Book in the matter of con- 
ducting public worship are multiplied. We note one or two 
by way of illustration : 

i. It secures order and decency. In an Episcopal Church 
we are always guarded against those irregularities and indecen- 
cies which so often, in non-liturgical churches, shock devout 



18 



minds. There are certain things to be done in church, and 
there is a prescribed way in which these things must be done, 
and we know in advance what these things are to be. Hence 
the stream of worship moves forward with an intelligent and 
unruffled smoothness, with nothing to disturb its quiet or ar- 
rest its flow. 

2. It gives a high and fixed character to our worship. In 
non-liturgical churches the worship depends upon the officiat- 
ing minister, and its tone must necessarily vary with his feel- 
ings. If the minister is "out of sorts," or if he is sick, or if 
he is spiritually depressed, such things will incapacitate him 
from leading the prayers of the great congregation. He will 
lack ideas; he will lack words; his effort will be tame, dis- 
connected, and unsatisfactory. Not so in the Episcopal 
Church. Whatever the minister's condition, he has the Pray- 
er Book. Its matchless prayers, gathered from the piety of 
all ages, are fixed. They are always ready for use. They 
vary not with the condition and feelings of the officiating 
minister. The congregation cannot go away empty. The 
worship retains its high level and never flags from its elevated 
standard. 

3. It educates in revere?ice and spiritual mindedness. All 
men are more or less affected by their associates and surround- 
ings. In attending divine worship in any given church the 
earnest soul is sure to catch the prevailing spirit. In the Epis- 
copal Church the earnest soul is sure to feel the presence and 
absorb the temper of the Prayer-Book. As year by year we 
yield to its gentle leadings, we insensibly imbibe its spirit and 
become attuned to its language. And where, outside of the 
Bible, can a book be found so redolent with devotion, so full 
of reverence, so replete with pious aspirations, so freighted with 
the breathings of a Christ-like mind ? To use the book is, 
with the spirit's blessing, to be lifted to the same standard. 



i 9 



WHAT BISHOP WHIPPLE SAYS ABOUT THE 
PRAYER BOOK. 

I love the Book of Common Prayer for its simple, fervent 
piety, for its clear, ringing, outspoken declaration of the great 
central truth of the Incarnation, and because it is everywhere 
full of the blessed doctrine of Justification alone by the mer- 
its of our Lord Jesus Christ. I love it because it everywhere 
breathes a spirit of tenderness and pity for the erring, while 
its warnings are plain and heart-searching, and it everywhere 
sets forth Christ crucified as the only hope of lost and sinful 
men. It holds, and it teaches in unmistakable language the 
great truths, but it does not bear the impress of any party. If 
its language has been pressed to the verge of partisan spirit, it 
has only shared the fate of the blessed Word of God. There 
never has been a liturgy broader in its spirit, more spiritual in 
its teaching, or clearer in its declaration of Christian doc- 
trine. It does not attempt to define or explain what God 
has not explained, and those doctrines over which men wran- 
gle the most fiercely are here set forth in the very language of 
the Word of God. I find in this my greatest comfort. I would 
not dare to use the language of any man to set forth the mys- 
teries of the Kingdom of God, but I can with an unfaltering 
voice use the language which the Saviour places upon my lips, 
and leave the deep spiritual meaning to Him. 



PRAYER-BOOK. 

BY A NON-EPISCOPALIAN. 

The Episcopal Church offers for our use the most venerable 
liturgy in the English tongue. The devotional treasures of 
the Roman Catholic Church are embalmed and buried in 
Latin. But in English, there are no lessons, gospels, psalms, 



20 



collects, confessions, thanksgivings, prayers — in one word, no 
religious form-book that can stand a moment in comparison 
with the Prayer-Book of the Episcopal Church in the two-fold 
quality of richness and age. 

The proper name, because truly descriptive, for this Church, 
would be Church of the Prayer-Book. As is the way with all 
other churches, so here, the Church champions and leaders 
have many wise things to say about the Church and her pre- 
rogative. But the pious multitudes that frequent her courts 
are drawn thither mostly by love of the prayers and praises, 
the litanies and lessons of the Prayer-Book. 

And, brethren of every name, I certify you that you rarely 
hear in any church a prayer spoken in English that is not in- 
debted to the Prayer-Book for some of its choicest periods. 

And further, I doubt whether life has in store for any of 
you an uplift so high, or downfall so deep, but that you can 
find company for your soul and fitting words for your lips 
among the treasures of this Book of Common Prayer. 

In all tune of our tribulation; in all time of our prosperity ; 
in the hour of death, and in the day of Judgment ; Good Lord 
deliver us. 



AN OBJECTION NOTED AND ANSWERED. 

A friend said to us the other day : "I would like to go to 
the Episcopal Church, because I admire your earnest gospel 
preaching, but your service is too great a bore" 

We answered : " Our service consists of prayer, praise, and 
the reading of God's Word. If, therefore, your objection 
means anything, it means that an hour devoted to prayer, 
praise, and the reading of God's Word is too much for your 
spiritual stomach. Such a confession, my dear brother, argues 
nothing against our service, but argues very much against your 
appetite for devotion." 



21 



FORMS OF PRAYER. 

Episcopalians use precomposed forms of prayer, in their 
public and sometimes in their private devotions, for the fol- 
lowing, among other reasons : 

ist. The Saviour joined in the devotions of the temple and 
synagogues, where precomposed prayers were always used. 

2d. When asked by His disciples to teach them to pray, 
Christ gave them a form of prayer, which is contained in the 
Prayer-Book, and is used in every service. 

3d. John the Baptist gave to his followers a form of 
prayer, and had the sanction of the Saviour. 

4th. It is found by experience that this mode secures better 
prayers and a higher form of devotion than when an extem- 
pore service is used. 

5th. It guards against errors of doctrine, which are often 
introduced into extempore prayers, and tend to corrupt sooner 
than when introduced into sermons, because the listeners are 
not in the same criticising state of mind. 

6th. It is absolutely necessary to secure common prayer, or 
congregational worship. 



TO DERIVE GOOD BY COMING TO CHURCH. 

1. Try to understand the Prayer- Book. Read it over care- 
fully at home, and get the right meaning and spirit of the 
services ; observe their order and connection. 

2. Join heartily and audibly in the responses. Don't be 
afraid to speak out. The "Amen" in the ancient Church, 
we are told, used to sound like a clap of thunder. 

3. Bring your Bible with you, and follow the reading of the 
lessons, and look out the text of the sermon. Use your Bible 
at home, and you will soon find it easy to turn to chapter and 
verse. 



22 



4. Take a warm and hearty part in the singing. If you 
have a good voice, use it to the glory of God. The great 
beauty of our Church services is that everybody is expected 
to take part in them. They are not left to the minister alone. 
They are truly congregational. 

5. Come in the spirit of prayer. Come in a teachable mind. 
Come anxious to appear before God. Come with all your 
sins and all your troubles, and leave them all at the feet of 
Jesus. Be in real earnest about your soul. Let first things 
be first. Expect great blessings. Never be satisfied, until 
you know that your own soul is saved, and your prayers are 
heard. 

6. Try to remember both your own prayers and the Word of 
God read and preached. Don't let the devil pluck the good 
seed out of your heart before you get home. Don't talk 
about worldly matters as soon as you leave the Church door. 
Think over, talk over, and pray over all you have heard. 
Food, to do good, must not only be swallowed, but digested, 
too. 



SUGGESTIONS FOR CHURCH PEOPLE. 

1. Prepare for divine service on your knees, not at your 
looking-glass. 

2. Be early enough at church to take part in. the whole 
service. 

3. On arriving at church go in at once, and do not hang 
around the door. 

4. On entering your pew kneel down and ask God to bless 
your own soul and the soul of His minister. 

5. If the services have not begun take your Prayer-Book, 
and, turning to some particular place, (say, for instance, the 



23 



Psalter, or the Confession, or the Commandments,) meditate 
thereon. At any rate avoid conversation, and gazing about 
the church, but try and bring yourself into full harmony with 
the services in which you are to engage. 

6. When the minister begins the worship, take your part. 
Do not lounge in your pew. Do not look around to see who 
is coming in at the door. Stand when the congregation 
stands. Kneel when the congregation kneels. Respond when 
the congregation responds. Engage heartily in the worship 
of your God. 

7. During the sermon fix your eyes upon the minister. Re- 
member he is the commissioned ambassador. Listen — not to 
criticise, not to cavil, not to be entertained, but to be helped 
heavenward. Such being your object, almost any sermon will 
come freighted with rich blessings to your soul. 

8. When the benediction has been pronounced remain for 
a short time longer upon your knees in prayer. Ask God to 
bless to your own soul, and to the souls of the departing con- 
gregation, the services in which you have been engaged. 

9. When your private devotions are thus ended go home. 
Do not stop to laugh and talk in church, nor in the yard, nor 
on the street, but go home / And there, in the seclusion of 
your chamber, thank God for the privileges you have enjoyed, 
and meditate upon the truths you have been taught and resolve 
to live a more Christ-like life. 



THE CARE OF THE CHURCH FOR THE LITTLE 
ONES. 

The Episcopal Church in nothing shows more clearly the 
spirit of her blessed Lord than in her tenderness for her little 
ones. Simplicity and wholesomeness mark all her words. 
All her care is motherly. The new-born Christians of what- 



2 4 



ever age are to her babes in Christ, " little children/' and her 
ruling idea is to feed them with the pure milk of the Word, 
that they may grow thereby. Her Collects and all her forms 
of sound words are the grandest thoughts and aspirations that 
the human mind and heart can entertain, uttered in the sim- 
plest, clearest and most digestible words the language yields. 

But how tenderly, how earnestly, how watchfully does she 
care for the infants themselves. How faithful is she to feed 
her kids beside the Shepherd's tents, to plant them in the 
house of the Lord that they may flourish in the courts of our 
God. She charges the parents to bring their offspring, at the 
earliest age, to the Lord. The child is most solemnly given 
to God ; is grafted into the body of Christ, and the parents, 
by every obligation that can bind and hold man to duty, are 
made the trustees of a sacred charge. The heir of heaven is 
to be cherished and trained for his great and precious privi- 
leges. 

And can we dare believe that in this most solemn sacra- 
ment, the Heavenly Father, the Bountiful Parent, the dear 
lover of everything human, can be indifferent? Friends can- 
not withhold some token of love. "If ye then, being evil r 
know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much 
more shall your Heavenly Father know how to give good gifts 
to them that ask Him ? 1 9 

The child is in baptism made a member of Christ, a child 
of God and an inheritor of the Kingdom of Heaven. God 
does His part, we verily believe, and the responsibility of the 
training is placed on the right shoulders, the natural guardians. 
Firm in her faith, the Church looks for a divine growth ; 
"first the blade, then the ear, and after that the full corn in 
the ear." The Christian home is treated as the nursery of 
heaven. The child is a "member of the Church ' ; at baptism. 
And in the fulness of time fully taught, used through life to 
the "Father's business," exercised in all the drill of the 



25 



Christian soldier, well instructed in all things that a Christian 
ought to know, the little one is advanced to a better degree, 
and received at the Table of the Lord. And for this con- 
summation, the Catechism, wonderful in its details and com- 
prehensiveness, a body of divinity, an epitome of divine 
truth, a teacher of all duty, revealer of mysteries, a bundle 
of germs of piety and manhood, is provided. 



A PRETTY CHURCH THOUGHT. 



Little Bessie was trying to explain to Emma that the Epis- 
copal Church, through her services as an educator, was a mother 
to her members. 

" Do you mean me to understand, Bessie, that you regard 
your Church as a kind of mother? n 

66 No, not a kind of mother, Emma, but a real, tender, af- 
fectionate mother, who, with all a mother's unwearied love, 
began with a thanksgiving at my birth, and has followed me 
in infancy with baptismal privileges, in childhood with the 
holy teachings of her Catechism, in youth with confirmation 
vows, and will follow me in maturity with holy sacraments ; 
who will go with me to the marriage altar, and will follow me 
with the gentlest and most loving words to the chamber of 
sickness and suffering ; who will send up to heaven the most 
fervent of petitions when I am breathing out my life, and will 
then with sad and solemn words reverently lay my body in 
the grave to await the resurrection morning. Yes, the Church 
is a precious mother, and I thank God that while I am under 
her maternal guidance I cannot be altogether an orphan. 



26 



A SHORT BAPTIST SERMON. 

And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac, being eight days 
old. — Gen. xxi, 4. 

Circumcision was the ancient mode, Divinely appointed, 
whereby persons were admitted into the Church of God. Upon 
this point there can be no doubt in the mind of any intelligent 
reader of the Scriptures. All must admit the fact. 

Hence, (but now we speak as a Baptist divine, and are look- 
ing at things through Baptist spectacles,) we are forced to 
conclude that Abraham was guilty of a great crime when he 
administered the sacrament of circumcision to that little eight 
day old baby, Isaac. His conduct — to our Baptist mind— was 
monstrous, wicked and absurd. His sacrilegious course — in 
our Baptist opinion — will be punished of God and work in- 
calculable harm to the babe himself. And all this we (that 
is, we who are versed in Baptist logic,) can prove by the most 
unanswerable arguments. 

In the first place, circumcision is described (Rom. 4, 11) as 
a sign, "a seal of the righteous of the faith which he had, 
being yet uncircumcised. " Faith, as you will thus perceive, 
is a condition precedent to circumcision. But then this eight 
day old babe could not exercise faith. Therefore, he ought 
not to have been circumcised. It was very wrong in Abra- 
ham. He went directly against the teachings of Scriptures 
which demand faith first, and circumcision afterwards. 

But again, what good could it do little Isaac ? The babe 
was only eight days old. He had no intelligent appreciation 
of the rite. He did not understand the sacramental service 
through which he was passing. He cried and whimpered and 
was tortured, all the while conscious alone of the pain which 
he was suffering. Could anything be more irrational, absurd 
and ridiculous? It could do the unconscious recipient no 
good. It was an unmeaning service wrought upon a little 



27 



babe, whose undeveloped faculties could not even surmise its 
character. Surely Abraham made a great mistake in indulg- 
ing in so great an absurdity. 

Yet once more. It would have been so much better if 
Abraham had waited, and allowed little Isaac to grow up, and 
then to decide the matter for himself. Very true, we feel 
constrained to decide for our children in less important mat- 
ters; selecting their school, directing their education, guard- 
ing their legal rights, etc., etc. ; but in the great concerns of 
the soul, and its relations to God, the policy of non-interfer- 
ence and non-intervention should be rigidly observed. What- 
ever the blasphemies of Bob Ingersoll in other respects, he is, 
to a certain extent, right when he declaims against those who 
presume upon the helplessness of children to train them in the 

doctrines of the Christian religion. 

****** ^ 

The remainder of the above Baptist sermon is lost. We 

regret it. Its frankness is refreshing. Its logic is powerful 

Still, we old-fashioned Episcopalians must be excused if, rising 

above human logic, we cling to the great facts of Scripture. 

For, after all, it is written — "And Abraham circumcised his 

son Isaac, being eight days old, as God had commanded 

him. * ' — Jtcv* A. W. Wedddl. 



WHY I TAKE MY CHILD TO BE BAPTIZED. 

1. Because I wish to dedicate my dear one from its earliest 
years to the service of God the Father, God the Son and God 
the Holy Ghost. 

2. Because I desire that my child may become " a member 
of Christ/ ' the child of God, and an inheritor of the king- 
dom of heaven. 



28 



3. Because I never could understand why Jewish parents 
might bring their child into the Jewish Church, and why I, a 
Christian, might not bring mine into the Christian Church. 
— 2 Cor. iii, 7-1 1. 

4. Because the custom of infant baptism is " most agreeable 
with the institution of (Tiri*! - ," and to the practice of early 
times. 



INFANT BAPTISM. 

The Baptists deny the sacrament of baptism to infants on- 
the ground that the baptism of infants is no where recorded 
in the New Testament. 

On this point, as a matter of fact, we think our Baptist 
friends are mistaken. In several places in the New Testament,, 
as we believe, the baptism of infants is recorded. What 
other meaning can we attach to such passages of Scripture 
as these which follow: "And when Lydia was baptized and 
her household " &c. — Acts xvi.: 15. * * * "I baptized 
also the household of Stephanus." — 1. Cor. i: 16. These 
texts, naturally interpreted, cannot be misunderstood. Should 
any one tell us next Sunday night that " Mr. A and his house- 
hold were baptized this morning/' we would be in no doubt 
as to their meaning. 

But not to press the point. If infants are to be denied 
baptism because none are recorded in the New Testament,, 
let our Baptist friends be consistent. There is no recorded 
instance in the New Testament of women being admitted to 
the Lord's Supper. Therefore, from the Lord's Supper let 
-women be excluded. If the argument is good in one case It 
certainly ought to be good in the other. 



2 9 



CHRIST AND LITTLE CHILDREN. 

The language of our Saviour is " Suffer the little children to 
come unto me and forbid them not, for of such is the King- 
dom of God." 

If, by the phrase, " Kingdom of God," we are to under- 
stand the Church on earth, the case is settled, for the Saviour 
tells us they are of that Church. 

If, by the phrase, " Kingdom of God," is meant the Church 
vf heaven, the case is settled ; for if worthy of membership 
in the Church above they are worthy of membership in the 
Church below. 

In either case the child is entitled to baptism, whereby they 
are received into the Church. 



SIMILAR CASES. 

" Believe and be baptized, and thou shalt be saved." In- 
fants cannot believe, therefore they ought not to be baptized. 
Exactly so. 

"Except ye repent ye shall all likewise perish." Infants 
cannot repent, therefore they must all likewise perish. 

"This, we command you, that if any would not work, neither 
should they eat." Infants cannot work, therefore they must 
not eat. 



QUESTIONS ON CONFIRMATION. 
Q. What is Confirmation? 

A. " The on laying of hands upon those who are baptized 
and come to years of discretion. ,, 



30 



Q. Have we any express mention of it in Scripture? 
A. Yes. 

Hebrews 6:2. " Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands 
and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment." 

Q. Why do you conclude that this passage refers to Con- 
firmation, and not to ordination of ministers, or to the lay- 
ing hands on the sick? 

A. Because it is classed with other " foundations ' 9 or ele- 
mentary truths and ordinances, as among "the principles of 
the doctrine of Christ.' 1 

Q. What are the other things with which it is classed? 

A. "Repentance from dead works and faith towards God, 
the doctrine of baptisms, and of resurrection of the dead, and 
of eternal judgment." 

Q. Are not all these matters of universal and permanent 
interest? 

A. Yes. 

Q. What then would you conclude concerning the "laying 
on of hands' 1 which is here joined with them? 

A. That it is of universal and permanent obligation? 

Q. Have we any examples of the laying on of hands in 
Scripture? 

A. Yes ; Peter and John "laid their hands on " those whom 
Philip had baptized to Samaria, "and they recieved the Holy 
Ghost;" and Paul did the same upon "certain disciples " at 
Ephesus with the like result. See Acts 8: 17, and 19: 6. 

Q. Who were the administrators in these instances? 

A. Apostles. 

Q. Who were the recipients ? 

A. Those who had "believed and were baptized." 

Q. What was the object of the rite? 

A. To obtain for them the Holy Ghost. 

Q. With what was the rite accompanied? 

A' With prayer. Acts. 8: 15. 



31 



Q. Was this rite continued in the Primitive Church after 
the death of the Apostles and the cessation of miraculous 
gifts? 

A. Yes. 

Q. Is it mentioned by any of the Fathers and early writers 
of the Church? 

A. Yes. Among others, by Tertullian in the second century, 
and by Cyprian, Jerome, Ambrose, and Augustin, later. 

Q. Was it universally practised until the time of the Re- 
formation? 

A. Yes. 

Q. Why did the Reformers of the Church of England 
retain this rite? 

A. Because they regarded it as a scriptural ordinance; and 
the principle on which they acted was to reject nothing from 
the Church but what was contrary to the word of God, or 
manifestly inexpedient. 

Q. Did any of the foreign Reformers approve of the rite, 
even when not retained in their own Churches? 

A. Yes; for example, Calvin and Beza. 

Q. From what Church have we derived it? 

A. From the Church of England. 

Q. Does our use of it resemble the Apostolic? 

A. Yes, as nearly as possible. 

Q. Who with us is the administrator of this rite? 

A. The Bishop. 

Q. Why is this? 

A. Because he is the chief Pastor, and as such succeeds 
the Apostles in the oversight of the Church? 

Q. What is sought for in Confirmation? 

A. The influences of the Holy Spirit. 

Q. Is it the miraculous or ordinary gifts of the Spirit that 
are looked for? 

A. The ordinary. 



32 



Q What do you mean by the ordinary gifts of the Holy 

Ghost? 

A. Those which are needed for our renewal and sanctifi- 

cation. 

Q. How do you expect these to be conveyed by this rite? 
A. In answer to believing prayer. 

Q. Do you suppose the Bishop to be able arbitrarily to give 
or withhold the grace and blessing of God? 
A. Certainly not. 

Q. From what then do you expect God's blessing? 

A. From the - due and faithful use in a proper spirit of an 
appointed ordinance. 

Q. Has our Church any further design in Confirmation be- 
sides seeking for the candidate the grace of the Holy Spirit? 

A. Yes, the renewal of the Baptismal Vow, and the confes- 
sing of Cnrist before men. 

Q. Is it necessary that there should be some outward and 
visible form of confessing Christ? 

A. Yes, He commands it. 

Q. Have not all churches some form for this purpose ? 
A. Yes, they necessarily have. 

Q. Is Confirmation a suitable occasion for doing this? 

A. Yes ; for when seeking God's blessing it is most proper 
that we should profess our determination to obey His Gospel 
and engage in His service. 



MEANS OF GRACE. 

Ordinarily, in the disbursement of the gifts of grace, God 
chooses to work through means. 

Every Sunday, at morning and evening service, the Prayer 
Book bid us say: V We bless Thee for . . . the means of 
grace. 1 7 



33 



By grace we understand God's free favor in blessing, ben- 
efiting, improving, correcting, strengthening, comforting, &c, 
&c., our hearts, and bringing us to holiness of life. 

By means of grace we understand those channels, agencies, 
and instrumentalities through which God has determined to 
confer these blessings of His grace. 

Some of these ?neans are private ; for example : 

1. Private Prayer. 

2. Study of the Bible. 

3. Self-examination. 

4. Meditation. 

Some of these means are public; for example: 

1. Public Worship. 

2. The Lord's Supper. 

3. Works of Charity. 

No Christian who would live, and grow in holiness, and 
ripen for heaven, can afford to neglect these means of grace. 



QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS. 

We are often asked certain questions, a few of which we 
shall here try to answer: 

1. "Do you let people who are not members of your 
Church take part in the services at Church ? n 

Ans. — We not only "let" them, we like them to do so. 
The service is easily found by following what the directions in 
italics say, and you not only may, but you ought to, conform 
to our mode of worship whenever you visit us. Sit when the 
rest sit; stand when they do; kneel when they do; and take 
part distinctly and devoutly in the Psalter, and all other parts 
of the service. 

2. "Shall we say the Creed too?" 

Ans. — Tell us why not. It is the creed of all Christendom, 



34 



not only of our branch of the Church universal, but of all 
orthodox bodies. Use it? Of course; not a word in it but 
can be proved by Scripture ; not a word in it to which, if 
you will take the pains to understand it, you can possibly ob- 
ject. Yes, say it; say it with all your heart; say it, and your 
voice will mingle with the voices of millions the world over y 
who repeat it Sunday after Sunday — as millions have said it 
Sunday upon Sunday, for more than a thousand years past. 

3. " Would you like us to kneel when we come into 
Church?" 

Ans. — Yes, if you wish. It is a good custom. Kneel and 
ask God's blessing on all that shall be said and done that day r 
in His house. 

N. B. — A good plan is to borrow a Prayer-Book, look it 
through, see how nearly the whole of it is straight from the 
Bible; peruse the prayers — that "Litany" — those "Collects" — 
and see how devotional and full they are ; what variety in 
them ; how they pray for everything man is likely to need. 
We have seen a Prayer-Book borrowed in this way enlighten 
a great deal. 

4. "Are you an Evangelical body?" 

Ans. — None more so. Let me give you the proof. The 
word "Gospel" is in the Greek, "Evangel." Hence, Evangel- 
ical, of course, means a "Gospel Church." All our doctrines 
are those of the Gospel. Our mode of Church government 
is that of the Gospel. Our sacraments are those of the Gos- 
pel. And we use more Gospel in one service than most 
Churches do in several. Hence, we are, emphatically, a 
Gospel Church. 

5. "Do you believe in conversion? " 

Ans. — Let me put some of the prayers of the Church on 
the witness stand. " Create and make in us new and contrite 
hearts." "Oh, merciful God, who * * desireth not the 
death of a sinner, but rather that he should be converted, and 
live." These should suffice. 



35 



MINISTERIAL GARMENTS. 



Some people object to the Episcopal Church because her 
ministers wear robes, but nothing could be more unreasona- 
ble. Our use of clerical robes is founded upon the custom 
which has prevailed from the earliest periods of which we have 
any account, of distinguishing between the various offices of 
men by the difference in their garments. Over the whole 
world, and in every age, a difference of costume has marked 
a difference of office. In our own country, we have many 
illustrations in point. The Judges of the Supreme Court of 
the United States wear a black gown while upon the bench. 
Our army and navy adhere to a professional dress when on 
duty. Our public societies and orders are distinguished by 
scarfs, or badges, or regalia, which are designed to indicate 
the membership or offices of individuals. All this is rea- 
sonable and proper, and naturally suggests itself to the mind. 
And is it not equally reasonable, and equally proper, that the 
minister of God should be clothed in a manner appropriate to 
his office, while he is engaged in its solemn duties ? When 
objection is made to our Church on this ground, may we not 
fairly reply that ,to be consistent, the objector must insist upon 
the officer's laying aside his uniform, he must oppose the badges 
and regalia of the different orders and societies, and when he 
has abolished all these, we shall be prepared to allow his ob- 
jection some weight, but not until then ? 

But we have higher authority for this custom than its rea- 
sonableness ; we plead for it the sanction of Scripture. Upon 
the only occasion where it has pleased the Almighty to regu- 
late the minute details of earthly worship, He gave express 
directions for the garments in which His ministers were to be 
clothed. The ordinary priests under the Jewish dispensation, 
when performing service, were to wear a white linen ephod* 



36 



Our argument is this : If there were anything improper in the 
minister of God wearing these garments, would the Lord have 
given it His sanction ? Clearly not. 

Again. If God commanded and prescribed these garments 
in one age of His Church, and if the reasons for their use 
were not peculiar to that dispensation, is it not natural to in- 
fer that they are highly proper now ? 

The history of the Primitive Church is clear in its testimony 
to the prevalence of this custom, and we have evidence that 
for at least fifteen hundred years the surplice has been the 
dress of the minister in the performance of public worship. 

John Wesley, George Whitfield, and the other great divines 
of the past, wore gowns when they preached. 

Hear Adam Clarke, the great Methodist commentator, 
speaking on Exodus, 28: 2. 

cc The white surplice in the service of the Church is almost 
the only thing that remains of those ancient and becoming 
vestments which God commanded to be made for glory and 
beauty. Clothing, as emblamatical of office, is of more conse- 
quence than is generally imagined." 

Chalmers, the great Presbyterian, commenting on the same 
passage, says : 

" There is here a distinct sanction given to the association 
of outward splendor with the office of the ministry — if not 
such as to make it imperative or indispensable, at least as to 
condemn the intolerance of those who stand opposed to it. 
In the antipathy to priestly garments, and in the controversies 
which have been raised about them, I can take no share." 

Such is the candid testimony of this great man, recorded in 
the calm moments of his communing with God. 

Thus, with reason, Scripture, the custom of the Primitive 
Church, in favor of the use of clerical garments, we submit 
that we are right in adhering to them, and that the objection 
against them falls to the ground. 



37 



DO NOT. 

1. Do not say to a Church clergyman, " I must come and 
hear you preach.''' The purpose of Church attendance is the 
worship of Almighty God. Remember that. 

2. If you have a pair of squeaking boots, do not wear them 
to Church. If you have richer clothes than your fellow-wor- 
shipper, do not wear them on Sunday. If necessarily late, 
do not go tramping into your accustomed seat ; wait, until, 
during some change in the service, you can go to your seat 
without attracting the attention or disturbing the worship of 
other people, any more than you can help. 

3. If others come into the Church after the service has be- 
gun, do not turn about to see who they are ; and do not 
stare at the choir. 

4. At the end of every prayer, say Amen; do not be afraid 
of being heard. It is very depressing to have an ominous si- 
lence after each prayer. A thin, weak murmur, is almost 
equally chilling. If it be the use of the congregation to say 
Amen, do not say Aw-men. 

5. Kneel down on your knees in prayer to God. If bodily 
infirmity should prevent your doing so, at least bow your head 
reverently. Only rude or very thoughtless people remain in 
an upright position while their fellow-men are engaged in 
prayer to Almighty God. 

6. Do not say Catholic when you mean Romanist. Do not 
talk about the " Episcopals," or the "Episcopalian Church." 



ONLY A HALF OF THE WIDOW'S MITE. 

A gentleman called upon a rich friend for some charity. 
"Yes, I must give you my mite/ 9 said the rich man. 
" Do you mean the 'widow's mite?' 99 asked the solicitor. 
" Certainly," was the answer. 



38 



" I shall be satisfied with half as much as she gave." said 
his friend. " How much are you worth?" 
"Seventy thousand dollars." 

" Give me, then, your check for thirty-five thousand. That 
will be half as much as the widow gave, for she, you know, 
gave her all. 11 

The rich man was concerned. People often try to shelter 
themselves behind the " widow 1 s mite, 11 and, under the cover 
of her contribution, give meanly to the Redeemer's cause. 
Her example, indeed, rightly interpreted, would pluck self- 
ishness out of the soul, and fill to overflowing the channels 
of true benevolence. 



HAND THE PLATE TO YOUR WARDENS. 

The above caption is designed to be a friendly suggestion to 
the clergy. 

Obeyed, and the Treasurer of the Diocesan Missionary 
Committee will be able to report funds in hand. 

Disobeyed, and the Treasurer of the Diocesan Missionary 
Committee must allow the drafts of our missionaries to be 
protested for non-payment. 

How can the laity of Virginia give while the clergy, from 
timidity or indifference, refuse to hand the plate to their 
Wardens. 



GOD'S ACCOUNTS. 

An infidel boasted that his two acres of "Sunday corn," 
on which all the work had been done on Sunday, and which 
yielded seventy bushels to the acre, upset the Bible idea that 
Sunday work never prospers. The pithy reply was: "If the 



39 



author of this shallow nonsense had read the Bible half as 
much as he has the works of its opponents, he would have 
known that the great Ruler of the Universe does not always 
square up His accounts with mankind in the month of Octo- 
ber." 



GIVING. 

Giving is worship. Every one should give, whether rich or 
poor. The cent of the straightened is as much needed for 
worship as the dollar of the richer. The poor man should no 
more omit giving because of his poverty, than an illiterate 
man should omit praying because of his grammar. No Christ- 
ian has a right to except this from his worship. 



THINGS TO BE REMEMBERED. 

1 . Let nothing induce you to speak disparagingly of your 
parish. Stand up for your Church as you would for your 
mother. 

2. Pray for your minister. He needs it. He is but a man,, 
with great responsibilities, and many to please. 

3. If any acquaintance of yours needs the aid or counsel 
of a clergyman, or if there is any opening to do a fellow- 
creature good, let your minister know about it. 

4. Let your minister know if there is any one sick in your 
family, or in the family of any member of your Church. 

5. Speak to strangers about your Church, and invite them 
to attend it. Be polite and attentive to those who do come. 
Give them a welcome, a seat and a book, and invite them to 
come again. 

6. Make no engagements on week nights when there is ser. 
vice at your Church. Church engagements stand before all 
others. 



40 



7. Consult your minister before you appoint the hour for a 
funeral. He may have another funeral the same day. 



SO-CALLED REASONS FOR NOT GOING TO 
CHURCH ON SUNDAY. 

1. No other day to myself but Sunday. 

2. Mean to have a walk in the country, or take a trip to the 
seashore. 

3. No fresh air but on Sundays. 

4. Caught cold at the theatre last night, intend nursing 
inyself to-day. 

5 . Do not like the liturgy ; always praying for the same. 

6. Do not like long prayers. 

7. Do not like the organ ; too noisy. 

8. Do not like vocal music ; makes one sad. 

9. The music is too scientific. 

10. The music is too plain and simple. 

11. No satisfaction in an extemporaneous sermon; too 
frothy. 

12. Dislike a written sermon ; too prosy and elaborate. 

13. Nobody to-day but the rector ; shall wait for the bishop. 

14. A strange clergyman to-day; always have too much to 
say. 

15. It is too hot for services to-day. 

16. It is raining too hard, and too cool. 

17. The church is comfortless; I am not able to go. 

18. The church is too much warmed ; it gives me the head- 
ache. 

19. Eleven o'clock is too early. 

REAL REASON. 

I have no inclination to go, and dorit want to go. 



4* 



THE PARISH TREASURER. 

The most useful jay officer in a parish is a prompt Treasu- 
rer. He is a delight to the eyes and a comfort to the heart 
of his rector. Happy is that rector who, when pay-day 
comes, finds the Treasurer always ready. 

In him the pastor sees a whole congregation promptly and 
cheerfully meeting its obligations, and from him the pastor 
receives a spur and a stimulus that pushes him powerfully to 
his duty. The ties of interest and affection that bind the 
priest to the people are very greatly strengthened. He can- 
not but be respected by them. 

No parish priest can have a more powerful helper than such 
an officer. No parish a more useful member. There are 
limitations. A treasurer cannot always help himself. He 
cannot pay what he does not have. But a prompt and ener- 
getic man, having the necessary tact, will collect more closely 
than a slow and dilatory man; and, if he be in office for a 
number of years, he will "educate the parish ' ' much more than 
one would suppose. Praise the prompt Treasurer, and, if 
you have such an one, keep him. — The Record, 



HOW A CHURCH WAS FILLED ON SUNDAY 
EVENINGS. 

The second service on Sunday in a certain parish was poorly 
attended. People thought they could not come out twice. 

The Vestrymen talked the matter over. Their talk resulted 
in a pledge to each other, that they would never absent them- 
selves, willingly, from the evening service, and they would 
urge every one they saw to plan for a second attendance. 



42 



The parents talked it over. They found that their children 
were not in the habit of spending the evening religiously or 
profitably, and they determined to set them the example of 
an earnest devotion to spiritual concerns. They began going 
twice a day the Sunday after. 

The young men talked it over. They concluded that it was 
their duty to attend both services, and to bring at least one 
young man with them. 

The young ladies talked it over. They thought that if they 
could go to a concert or a party at night, it could not do them 
any harm to be at Church after sunset. They decided that 
they would all go regularly, and take each a young man with 
them. 

The minister did not know what to make of it. He began 
to flatter himself that he was a latent Spurgeon. The attend- 
ance was increasing every week. Strangers, seeing the direc- 
tion of the crowd, followed. It became the most popular 
Church in the city. 



USE YOUR PRAYER-BOOK. 



Why not ? 

In the most solemn manner you have professed yourself a 
Christian. 

As a Christian, it is your bounden duty to Worship God 
with the homage of your whole being, body, soul and spirit. 

The Prayer-Book furnishes you a manual, — scriptural, ear- 
nest and elevated — fragrant with the aroma of heavenly de- 
votion, — by which your worship may be fitly guided. 

Then why not ? Why not worship God when you come to 
Church? Why not worship God in the language of the 



43 



Prayer-Book ? Why not express your worship in the mode 
prescribed by the Church to which you belong ? 
Use your Prayer-Book ! 



GOOD RESOLUTIONS. 

1. If hitherto I have been neglectful or careless about re- 
ligion, I will think about it now. 

2. If I have never had faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as 
my own personal Saviour, I will now believe that He " loved 
me and gave Himself for me. 1 9 

3. If I have never been baptized, "what doth hinder me" 
now? By the grace of God I will be baptized into Him who 
died for me. 

4. If I have not been confirmed I cannot delay it longer, 
for truly my heart is "ready and desirous to be confirmed " 
in that faith I now know to be so precious. 

5. If I have never "drawn near in faith" to the Holy 
Table, I will approach it now, for my soul longs for its spir- 
itual food and refreshing grace. 

6. If I have been indifferent about attending services, I 
dare not be so any longer ; the God I serve is present to bless 
me ; can I be absent ? 

7. If I have never worked for Him in His Church and 
its organizations, Oh, Lord, hear now my prayer, " What wilt 
Thou have me to do ? 9 1 

8. If I have selfishly kept back from the Lord what has 
been His, not mine, I offer all to Him now, freely, cheerfully, 
not grudgingly, but with a willing heart. I dedicate myself 
and mine to Him; 



44 



AIDS TO REFLECTION. 

1. The Dead Sea is always receiving and never giving. That 
is what makes it dead. 

2. The question is not so much will the heathe?i be saved, 
but. rather, will we be saved if we do not send them the 
Gospel. 

3. St. Matthew was called from the receipt of custom to 
serve God. The business man of to-day has a harder task — to 
:serve God at the receipt of custom. 

4. It matters not what a man loses if he saves his soul — or 
what he saves if he loses his soul. 

5. It is one thing to wish to have the truth on our side, and 
another thing to wish to be on the side of truth. 

6. It is objected that the Prayer-Book prayers do not take 
hold of the hardened sinner. Remember that prayers are not 
addressed to the hardened sinner. 

7. Faith is a cathedral with pictured windows. Without 
you see no glory ; within every ray reveals a harmony of un- 
speakable splendors. 

8. It does not pay to receive $15 license tax from the man 
who sells liquor, and expend $1,000 on the trial of him who 
buys it and commits crime. 

9. Absent yourself from church and you starve your own 
soul, discourage your minister, and depress your congregation. 

10. If we do not retreat from sin, we advance in it. And 
the further we go, the further we will have to come back. 

11. Conversion is not a tiling to be done and then done 
with. But something to be carried on just as long as there 
is any sin to be converted from, and any divine perfection to 
be converted to. 

i2 £ Faith alone justifies; but not the faith that is alone. 



45 

13. A man in Baltimore once made a large and independ- 
ent fortune attending to his own business. 

14. Whiskey is much easier to handle in barrels than it is 
in men. 

15. A man is not lost because he has riches, but because 
riches have him. 

16. There is nothing so certai?i as death, or so u?icertai?i as 
the time. 

17. Self-denial is easier than repentance* 



GRACE. 

Say " grace M before your meals. If you do not know what 
to say, use one of the following : 

1. Sanctify, O Lord, this food to our use, and us to Thy 
service, for Jesus* sake. Amen. 

2. Lord, bless us, and make us truly grateful for these and 
all thy mercies, for Christ's sake. Amen. 

3. We thank Thee, Oh Father, for what Thou hast here 
given us, and ask Thee to bless it to our use, for Christ's sake. 
Amen. 

4. As we live, O God, upon Thy bounty, let us live to Thy 
glory, for Jesus Christ's sake. Amen. 



WHY A YOUNG PERSON WAS ADVISED TO JOIN 
THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH. 

Men and women may attach themselves to this or that 
church because the company they find in it is congenial, and 
unless they disregard some principle or some conviction of 
duty in doing so, no one can reproach them for it. It does 



4 6 



strengthen our faith and warm our hearts to join our voices 
with those of dear friends and respected acquaintances in 
worshipping the Great God. And it is a dear, dear privilege 
to have pure and familiar forms of prayer and praise in which 
we may pour out our hearts to God in company. 

If the Episcopal Church has a name for respectability, it is 
because its forms of prayer and praise, so pure and pious, and 
its abundant use of the simple Word of God, make it so plea- 
sant to good people, and to all who don't close their eyes and 
ears and understandings against them, and because there is no 
such teacher and purifier and refiner as the Prayer-Book, God's 
word being its power. 

1. You are young and know very little of the Bible or Chris- 
tianity. Go where you are most likely to be taught, and likely 
to be taught most of the pure Word of God. 

2. Our morning and evening services will give you, each 
Sunday, parts of from five to ten chapters from the New and 
Old Testament, with as little weariness and as much variety 
as possible. In the devout reading of the Psalms you will 
bear your part, reading every other verse with the minister. 
No better plan could be followed to make your heart, and 
mind, and lips familiar with the devout words and aspirations 
of the man after God's own heart. This is exercising yourself 
in the law of the Lord. Your worship will be live and lov- 
ing. The Psalmist's wisdom and love will be fitted in your 
lips. 

3. Our catechism is clear, simple, easy to understand, easy 
to commit to memory. It gives you, in a small space, all you 
ought to avoid, believe and do — all the seed and elements of 
theology. 

4. The collects, "forms of sound words," are the devout 
longings of the wisest and most learned, best and purest, and 
devoutest of God's saints who have gone before us. In using 
them our souls are in absolute sympathy with the spirits of 



47 



just men made perfect ; we lift up our hearts to the Lord, and 
we learn the highest and largest knowledge of God and of 
our duty, while we are calling on them. " Through these, 
doctrine drops as the rain and distils as the dew." 

5. All the service, you will see, designed first to help you 
to worship God devoutly, reverently, lovingly, intelligently, 
humbly and decently. And all through it, as flowers by the 
wayside, you will see scattered holy aspirations and beautiful 
words of divine wisdom and lowly but pure love. You will 
recognize in it the tender care of the mother to lead the child 
of God in the ways of pleasantness and peace, to teach it true 
worship, and thoroughly to imbue it with the Word of God. 
Any one who mistakes its purpose and falls into formalism, or 
prides himself on account of its high privileges and aristocratic 
patronage, is miserably to be pitied. 

6. The litany seems intended to search and prove men's 
hearts, to purge them with hyssop, to try and know them. It 
brings to light all the fears, hopes, dangers, necessities, expe- 
riences and trials to which they are subject or liable, and lays 
them before God, that He may defend, grant, comfort, pro- 
vide, heal and save. In it we make a clean breast before our 
loving Father, and open our bosom to the blessed Comforter. 

7. Our liturgy is the high privilege of the Church in its 
maturity. Our Prayer-Book has gathered piety from every 
source. It is the property and work of no party or sect, but 
the common property of the Christian Church. Every de- 
nomination of Christians has contributed to its treasury. 

8. As our Common Prayer is the blest Word of God, and 
the piety of His saints, true and tried, its words never grow 
old. They have the enduring beauty of the stars, and the 
freshness of fruits and flowers that recur in their seasons. 
And in the Christian family they are like the dear old home, 
crowded and clustered with associations of parents, brothers, 
sisters and dearly loved friends. 



4 8 



9- Forms of prayer are as necessary as forms of praise. Me- 
thod is necessary in every well-conducted business. We would 
prepare our words and conduct to come before an earthly dig- 
nitary. And shall we not when we come to worship God r 
put on not only our best garments, but the purest words and 
the fittest behavior, clothing ourselves with " the righteous- 
ness of the saints' 9 appearing in Jesus* house. 




I 



si *r 



